The present invention relates generally to sun visors for vehicles, and, in particular, to the shape of the edge of the sun visor.
Over the past several decades, automobile designs have become safer in many respects, one of which relates to the interior compartment the driver and passengers occupy. Specifically, the design of dash boards, steering wheels, handles, control knobs and other interior components has become smoother and softer. Generally speaking, hard, protruding surfaces have been replaced with softer, rounded surfaces wherever possible. One interior component which has undergone such improvements is the sun visor.
One sun visor design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,118 (Crotty, III), owned by the assignee of the present invention and hereby incorporated by reference. The design disclosed in the ""118 patent involves an outer cover assembly which folds unto itself and sandwiches a core member therebetween. The exterior cover assembly is made of a cloth or vinyl upholstery covering, which is adhesively bonded to a semirigid foundation, typically formed of kraft paper. The upholstery cover is made larger than the foundation and thereby folds around the edges of the foundation. Thus, when the sun visor is folded in half, the outer edges of the cover assembly are sandwiched together and define the profile of the sun visor. The core member is disposed between the foundation halves and connects to a rod, which in turn connects to the interior headliner of the vehicle.
It is desirable to improve upon the above-referenced design.
The present invention provides a sun visor having a rounded member that partially defines the outer periphery of the sun visor. The rounded member avoids the undesirable bifurcated shape of the edge formed when two cover halves of a foldable foundation are sandwiched together, as occurs in prior art sun visors.
The basic design of sun visor as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,118 has certain advantages in terms of production costs, functionality and reliability. Moreover, the design disclosed in the ""118 patent has gained a solid reputation throughout the automotive industry. However, international authorities have recently promulgated regulations which impose design constraints on sun visors. One particular restriction requires the contactable edges of non-rigid parts to have a radius of not less than 3.2 mm. Such a requirement poses a design problem with the type of sun visor disclosed in the ""118 patent, which problem is addressed by the present invention.
In one form thereof, the present invention provides a sun visor assembly comprising a substantially flat foundation folded unto itself thereby forming two foundation halves. The halves have corresponding shapes that define an edge of the sun visor. An upholstery cover covers the foundation and forms an exterior surface of the sun visor. A bead member is attached to the foundation and is positioned proximate the edge, the bead member comprising a rounded member whose surface comprises a substantially semicircular cross section. The surface faces away from the sun visor, whereby the edge comprises a radius.
In a preferred form thereof, the bead member further comprises a stem member extending from the rounded member, the stem member having a substantially flat surface disposed adjacent one of the halves and connected thereto. The stem member comprises a stake extending therefrom, the stake extending through the one half and heat fused thereto, whereby the stake secures the bead member to the foundation.
In another preferred form, the stem member comprises a pair of stem members, a first one of the pair abutting the first half and a second one of the pair abutting the second half. More preferably, the first and said second ones of the pair of stem members abut outside surfaces of the foundation halves.
In another preferred form, the rounded member has a radius of at least 3.2 mm, more preferably at least 3.5 mm.
The advantage of the present invention is that it provides a sun visor having a rounded periphery which is safer for the occupant of the vehicle.
Another advantage of the present invention is that its design is compatible with prior art sun visor designs and manufacturing processes. Thus, the sun visor provided by the present invention is cost effective to produce.